PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- A suicide bombing near a Shiite mosque in Pakistan killed at least 15 people Saturday, including the Peshawar police chief.
Investigators said the bomber set off a suicide belt when police prevented him from entering a religious procession, the Daily Times of Pakistan reported. About 60 people were hurt.
Six of the dead were police officers. They included the chief, Malik Saad, and his deputy.
Officials said both Shiites and Sunnis were killed in the blast.
No one has claimed responsibility for the bombing, but authorities do not believe it was related to sectarian conflict.
About 2,000 people had gathered at the Qasim Ali Khan Mosque for the Mohurram procession. Security was tight because of a bombing Friday at a hotel in Islamabad.
The mosque explosion, which occurred in the evening, also cut power to the neighborhood, The New York Times reported.
A police official said some body parts had been recovered that may have been the bomber. They were sent to a laboratory for forensic analysis.
Peshawar, at one end of the Khyber Pass, is the capital of the Northwest Frontier Province.
